Salmon in Fig Leaves

I've made this for decades. Snip the leaf stems. Optional to blanch them (they bend more easily), but I just rinse in hot water. Always use skin-on salmon for best flavor; lightly coat it with olive oil, salt and pepper, then wrap and overlap leaves to seal; coat top of leaves lightly with olive oil. Optional: Use toothpicks to secure leaves to fish. I wrap the whole, large filet, not portions. Roast 20 min at 400 till leaves char slightly.

The fig leaves added a subtle but delicious richness to the salmon, plus it just looks beautiful when you’re arranging it. Definitely keep the leaves moist after washing because the salmon will stick to it once it dries out in the oven. But! I have no clue how they cooked it through in such a short time. I cooked the recommended time and it was still raw in the middle. Each oven is different so maybe it’s me, but I had to bake it about twice as long to cook through all the way.

Swapped ~ for what I had on hand ~ Krinos jarred grape leaves for the fig leaves. Dill for the fennel. Served on fluffy white rice with Hollandaise Sauce. The grape leaves crisp up and are a nice textural play in the dish.

I made this probably four times at the end of summer with leaves from our fig tree. Some people said they couldn’t detect the fig but I could and it makes the fish very moist

Made 10/22/18 Karen and I loved this. It doesn’t flavor salmon the way it does sea bass but it’s still lovely and a worthy endeavor.

This was simply excellent. I used king salmon and the caper butter suggested.

This is a recipe where the quality of the Spring (King) salmon really counts -- no place to use flabby-textured, insipid-tasting farmed salmon. The enhancement of fig and fennel is subtle, letting the wonderful taste of the wild salmon shine through. I've also made this using a fig leaf-lined Chinese bamboo steamer, with excellent results.

I have subsequently done this with parchment paper which was entirely satisfactory.

I'd have to trespass on a grouch neighbor's property to get fig leaves. So I used parchment paper and then drizzled the salmon with a little bit of fig balsamic vinegar.

I was very curious about the fig leaves' contribution to this dish. What would it be? Flavor? Moisture? I seasoned the salmon lightly with a seafood seasoning by Red Stick Spice Co. and subbed pesto for fennel. After 12 minutes of baking (perfectly cooked), I was met by a wonderful aroma that was reminiscent of anise. Now I knew why the recipe called for fennel, also with its subtle anise flavors. I have a humongous fig tree in my backyard so I'm now going to try fig leaves on everything....

This is a simple recipe with a delicate flavor perfect for a summer day. It took exactly 12 minutes to bake. I served it with cold white quinoa instead of boiled potatoes and used my old and trusted aioli recipe from the NY Times.

Can you use parchment paper instead of fig leaves?

Easy but I agree neither the fig leaves nor the fennel added much. Next time i'll try parchment paper bottom and top with a short branch of fresh tarragon or rosemary. I cooked 10 oz. of fish which took 15 min. on pure convection.

Could one use grape leaves instead? These are readily available, jarred, on the East Coast.